Clean Ocean Action spring beach sweeps at two locations in Belmar

Belmar, New Jersey, is one of more than 50 coastal communities participating in the Clean Ocean Action’s spring beach sweeps on Saturday, April 21. The cleanups on Belmar beach take place from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on 3rd Avenue beach (gathering at the boardwalk) and at 16th Avenue beach (gathering at Dunkin Donuts, 1601 Ocean Avenue). Community-wide beach sweeps are also taking place in nearby towns, including Asbury Park, Avon-by-the-Sea, Bradley Beach, Manasquan, Ocean Grove, Sea Girt, and Spring Lake.

According to the Clean Ocean Action (COA) website, more than 115,800 volunteers have removed over 5.9 million pieces of debris from New Jersey's beaches and waterways since the first beach sweep in 1985.

Recently, the Belmar Environmental Commission has been focused on reducing trash and plastic pollution on the community’s beaches and in the local waterways. In 2017, Councilman Tom Brennan, council liaison to the Belmar Environmental Commission, introduced a reusable tote bag giveaway to help reduce the use of single-use plastic bags, such as those from grocery stores, convenience stores, and takeout food businesses. At the March 20, 2018, Belmar Mayor and Council meeting, Councilman Brennan also proposed the idea of a ban on the use of such bags in the borough to further minimize the environmental impact.

“Anything that we can come up with that will reduce the footprint of using plastic and leaving it, we should do. These single-use plastic bags are by far the simplest thing for us to do,” he stated during the meeting, adding that the bag ban could “make Belmar an environmental leader in our county and our region.”

According to Clean Ocean Action, during its 2017 community beach sweeps in April and October, 7,416 volunteers collected and disposed of 373,686 total items. The top five items found were:

• Plastic pieces, 15.04 percent of all items collected;
• Bottle caps and lids, 13.62 percent;
• Candy and food wrappers/bags, 10.76 percent;
• Plastic straws and stirrers, 8.34 percent; and
• Cigarette filters, which are not biodegradable, 7.76 percent.
• Read the full 2017 beach sweeps report.

There’s still time to register for the April 21 beach sweeps. Click here to sign up. Last-minute volunteers are also welcome to show up the day of the event without pre-registering. All participants should bring gloves and dress appropriately for the weather. According to weather.com, the Belmar forecast for April 21 is partly cloudy with a high temperature in the low 60s and light wind. Sunscreen and hard-soled shoes are also highly recommended.

For more information, visit the COA website, or contact the organization at outreach@cleanoceanaction.org or 732-872-0111.

Read more on the Belmar Beachcomber blog

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